Celts discovered in Cornaux NE were probably victims of tsunami
Published: Monday, Jun 17th 2024, 12:50
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New analyses of 2000-year-old Celtic skeletons from the Three Lakes region point to a tsunami as the cause of death. However, the researchers were also unable to rule out the possibility that the Celts discovered around 60 years ago were ritually executed.
By searching for the cause of death of these twenty people, researchers hope to gain new insights into Celtic culture in Switzerland and northern Italy, as the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) announced on Monday.
Most of the written sources about this come from Julius Caesar. "Because these accounts come from a military opponent, they are not always objective and complete", explains Zita Laffranchi from the University of Bern in the press release. She is the lead author of the analysis published on Monday in the journal "Scientific Reports".
Tsunami or sacrificial ritual?
Since the discovery of the collapsed wooden bridge and the skeletons on the Zihl Canal in Cornaux NE in 1965, there has been controversy among experts as to how these people perished. There are two theories: One is that an abrupt flood or tsunami led to the collapse of the bridge. Another is that the skeletons were human victims.
The demographic composition of the victims - mainly young men - suggests that they could have been a group of sacrificed prisoners or slaves, according to the researchers. However, the good condition of the finds suggests that the bodies were quickly buried under sediment after death. This is what would have happened in a tsunami. The jumble of bones and pieces of wood also points to this.
According to the researchers, it is also possible that not all deaths occurred at the same time. So both theories could also be true.
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